All That Jazz

Festival Swings To Sound Of Success

HAMPTON — Whenever this year's Hampton Jazz Festival faced the danger of slipping into the realm of the ordinary, there was someone like Diane Schuur to shake it up.

Schuur's gutsiness was typical of the bold weekend of jazz that ended Sunday. It was anything but an ordinary year of blue notes and improvised runs for the 22nd annual jazz festival.

It was typified by acts such as Schuur's, a big-belting, bluesy jazz singer with a range as wide as the Mississippi. She appeared on stage Saturday after a tastefully arranged set of big-band swing by the Count Basie Orchestra, which took the crowd back to ballrooms of the 1940s.

Then came Schuur, piercing the dark dressed in a heavily sequined blazer and rhinestone-rimmed sunglasses. The blind singer was led onstage and handed a microphone.

The tastefulness ended; the tempest began. Schuur kicked up dirt with her soaring, rowdy blues numbers, while the talented swing responded lushly. Her first on-stage words: "We're going to kick some major butt tonight."

The music did some kicking all weekend. It showcased all forms of jazz, from the funky to mainstream. This year's festival took a chance - taking an ambitious approach by booking lesser known acts in an attempt to make the festival more focused on the many facets of jazz. Despite technical problems that made two of the three days run late, it succeeded.

Each day had its high notes, when the performances reached a pinnacle. Grover Washington Jr. stole the show Friday with a coming-right-at-you set of funky, electric jazz. The saxophonist had the crowd clapping along. Saturday belonged to Schuur and the Count Basie Orchestra.

Sunday, saxophonist David Sanborn was the perfect medicine to end the festival on an upbeat note. His energetic rock-influenced band brought streams of poeple swarming to the edge of the stage.

The surprise of the festival was gospel singers BeBe and CeCe Winans, who played a tight, powerful set of rhythmic gospel. The Winans brought an electric guitar and keyboard: It was gospel with punch.

There were some disappointing moments from two legends, Ray Charles and Sarah Vaughan. Charles, who didn't start until 1:15 a.m. Friday - 45 minutes behind schedule - played a short, rushed set fraught with sound problems. His 12-piece horn section was barely noticeable.

Vaughan opened the Sunday concert 50 minutes late. The jazz-singing great played a spotty set, punctuated more by her repeated complaints about the hot lights and sound quality than by the music.

There were other highlights to a festival show that, except for a few negatives, was consistently strong. Festival-goers heard all types of jazz variants, for all tastes. Even the vendors had a good year.

More than 29,338 people swarmed to the musicians' showcase at Hampton Coliseum, almost 2,000 more than attended last year. By the end of Saturday's performance, concession sales already had doubled from the previous year's totals, said concessions director Otis Williamson.

Saturday's concert sold out, with 10,699 people streaming through the gates. Sunday, 8,633 showed. Promoters were hoping for 30,000 people, a number they haven't reached since 1975, but were not disappointed with this year's figures.

Saturday's show began on time with Take 6, a six-man gospel-jazz group that wowed the crowd with the way the members used their voices, both collectively and individually. The a cappella group (no instruments) made the sounds of saxophone and percussion with vocal chords. The effect was stunning.

Spyro Gyra kept the energy level high. The jazz-rock fusion group effectively played off each other by taking turns with instrumental solos and fills. Saxophonist and group leader Jay Beckenstein kept the set tight while the free-form jazz floated around him. Unfortunately, the music began to sound the same by the end of the set.

After a night of jazz, The O'Jays brought a high-voltage rhythm and blues show. Dressed in matching burnt-orange jumpsuits, the three-man group went through well-timed spins, falls and fancy steps. Eddie Levert had the women in the crowd worked up with his sexually charged moves and words.

The group played most of its hits ("Back Stabbers," "Use Ta Be My Girl"), but its only No. 1 hit, "Love Train," curiously was missing. Sometimes, the band strayed to medleys when complete songs would have been more satisfying.

If Saturday's music showed the diversity of jazz, Sunday's show highlighted the old and new.

It began slowly, as Vaughan took the stage late and played a short set. Her trademark rich contralto voice still brought goosebumps, but she was distracted by the sound feedback and lights. She would stop in the middle of songs.

Still, Vaughan managed a beautiful "Misty," where she sang both the male and female parts, and her back-up trio was tight and effective.

Jazz guitarist Larry Carlton delighted the crowd with his jazz-rock style. Carlton, still recovering from a tragic shooting last year, rasped out words between songs. Yet his sinuous, slinky guitar lines did the talking on show highlights such as the Steely Dan cover "Josie."

After a harder-edged guitar set, The Winans came on stage for more heavenly pursuits. The gospel-based siblings brought a rich sound from the five-piece band, while CeCe Winans' sweet voice reminded one of Anita Baker. It was fun, joyous gospel, highlighted by BeBe Winans' cries of "Give me a J" (for Jesus) on "The Answer Is You."

The Winans were a tough act to follow, but Sanborn's six-member group was up to the task. His show had as much to do with rock as it did with jazz. It was heavy on melody and crunching rythyms. While the saxophonist played his signature laid-back riffs, electric guitarist Robin Ford and bassist Tom Varney provided solid harmonic support.